The fines folks of Camden County, Georgia have come up with a novel way to save money while also dealing with overcrowded prisons.
A select group of inmates may be exchanging their prison jumpsuits for firefighting gear in Camden County.
The inmates-to-firefighters program is one of several money-saving options the Board of County Commissioners is looking into to stop residents’ fire insurance costs from more than doubling. [...] The inmate firefighter program would be the most cost-effective choice, saving the county more than $500,000 a year by some estimates. But that option is already controversial, drawing criticism from the firefighters who would have to work alongside – and supervise – the prisoners.
The Camden program would put two inmates in each of three existing firehouses, and they would respond to all emergencies – including residential – alongside traditional firefighters. The inmates would have no guard, but would be monitored by a surveillance system and by the traditional firefighters, who would undergo training to guard the inmates.
Brilliant! Firefighters who we don't have to pay a salary because they're prisoners!
Question -- If you can trust someone enough to carry the responsibility of firefighting, why are they in prison to begin with?
The tentacles of the Prison Industrial Complex grow another inch each day.
via ThinkProgress